Legislative Advocacy Fellow

Legislative Advocacy Fellow

Reports To: Policy and Advocacy Director

Last Updated: 10/06/2026

Location: Remote, Oregon Preferred

Status & Compensation: This position is a part-time role averaging 20 hours per week at a rate of $30 per hour, running from mid-November 2026 through mid-July 2027. Based on the 20-hour schedule, the Fellow is eligible for prorated medical, dental, and life insurance, a 4% retirement match, a $50 monthly communication stipend, and prorated paid vacation, sick time, and holidays.

Note Before You Apply

We know great candidates don't always arrive in a perfect package. If you don't check every box, we still want to hear from you. At Our Children Oregon, we hire for character, curiosity, and commitment - not just credentials.

Relevant skills gained through lived experience, community work, unconventional career paths, or roles outside the nonprofit sector are valued here. Our education and experience requirements are guidelines, not gatekeepers. If this role speaks to you and you believe you can grow into it, please apply.

All Our Children Oregon employees are expected to champion our Vision, Mission and Values

Vision:

Oregon will lead the nation in providing a statewide community that nurtures and protects all children, ensuring that all "Our Children" belong and have equal value and opportunity.

Mission:

Our Children Oregon will be a voice and a force for the common good for all Oregon children, ensuring every child has the opportunity to realize their fullest potential by preventing child abuse and by elevating the needs and the voices of the most impacted.

Values:

• We center EQUITY. We advocate and prioritize solutions that address intersecting racial and systemic disparities, improving outcomes for all.
• We champion the WHOLE-CHILD. We recognize how issues are interconnected and act to holistically improve child well-being.
• We hold the LONG-VIEW. We take informed action to invest in children and families in support of Oregon's future.
• We practice COLLABORATION and INCLUSION. We listen, amplify, and bring together diverse partners and communities for meaningful change.
• We cultivate BELONGING. We envision a future where children and communities are valued and connected.
• We choose JOY. We practice gratitude, embrace emergence, and celebrate relationships, wins, and possibilities.

SUMMARY

The Legislative Advocacy Fellow is a part-time, graduate-level fellowship position for the 2027 legislative session at Our Children Oregon. The Fellow tracks and reports on legislation related to child well-being to OCO staff, Children's Agenda coalition members, and partner organizations. The Fellow drafts action alerts, testimony, blogs, and social media content tied to priority legislative efforts, and helps analyze legislative concepts for their impact on children and families. At least five hours each week go to developing advocacy communications materials for the Communications Director, which turns products like testimony into blogs, graphics, and more. The Fellow gains deep, hands-on experience in Oregon's legislative process and supports positive change for Oregon's children and families.

ESSENTIAL RESPONSIBILITIES include but are not limited to:

Legislative tracking and reporting

• Track legislation related to child well-being and report on it in a timely way to OCO staff, Children's Agenda coalition members, and interested partners to support their engagement.
• Analyze legislative concepts and their impacts on children and families, with attention to how policies affect diverse communities.
• Support analysis of agency budgets to understand state priorities.
• Maintain a calendar of key legislative deadlines, hearings, and work sessions for priority bills.
• Flag new bills and amendments to the Policy and Advocacy Director so priority efforts can adjust quickly.

Coalition member support

• Support Children's Agenda coalition members in engaging with priority efforts through sample materials such as testimony and action alerts, along with clear direction on next steps.
• Add new members to the Children's Agenda Google group, forum, and partner list.
• Answer partner questions about bill status and share updates through coalition communication channels.

Communications and content

• Draft action alerts, testimony, and social media content tied to priority legislative efforts.
• Turn legislative materials, such as testimony, into blogs, graphics, and other communications.
• Coordinate timing so content reaches partners and the public while bills are active.

Legislative scorecard and professional growth

• Develop and produce a legislative scorecard with close support from the Policy and Advocacy Director.
• Compile bill votes and outcomes for the scorecard and share results with staff and partners at the end of session.
• Attend legislative hearings in Salem or online to observe and report on priority bills and hearings.
• Meet regularly with the supervisor to set goals, review work, and build skills in Oregon's legislative process.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS & ABILITIES

• Commitment to equity, inclusion, and engaging diverse perspectives in policy and advocacy.
• Strong organizational and management skills, with a detail-oriented and adaptable approach.
• Problem-solving mindset with the ability to manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment.
• Collaborative and strategic thinker, excited to lead and work within a team.
• Excellent interpersonal, written, and verbal communication skills-able to build trust with a variety of stakeholders, including legislators, partners, and team members.
• Self-motivated, with a dedication to keeping up to date professionally and technically, and applying new knowledge to the job.
• Demonstrates initiative to explore available tools and resources to autonomously solve challenges, with a good understanding of when a leader needs to be involved in decision-making.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS

• Bachelor's degree in public policy, political science, communications, or a related field, or an equivalent combination of education and experience. Graduate students and recent graduates are encouraged to apply.
• Ability and experience in understanding policy impacts for diverse communities, with an equity lens.
• A basic understanding of the legislative process.
• Strong writing skills and the ability to translate ideas across mediums, such as testimony, blogs, and social media.
• Organization and initiative to track tasks, find efficiencies, and identify missing pieces.
• Accountability for commitments, including holding yourself to OCO's internal culture and norms.
• Strong project management skills and the ability to meet deadlines while managing competing priorities.
• Any combination of any of the above that enables performance of the essential responsibilities.
• Resides within a reasonable commuting distance of zip code 97232 with consistent access to transportation to ensure ability to attend in-person meetings and events as needed.
• Access to a distraction-free work environment, a reliable mobile device, and secure, high-speed internet.
• Strong computer proficiency, including Google Workspace, Microsoft Office, and CRM/project management tools (e.g., EveryAction, Trello).

ADDITIONAL DESIRED QUALIFICATIONS

• Experience with policy advocacy, such as writing comments, testifying to a public body, or reading legislation.
• Journalism experience or background.
• Valid driver's license.

PHYSICAL DEMANDS include but are not limited to:

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made for individuals with medical limitations or disabilities to perform the essential functions.

• Able to communicate with others in order to accurately exchange information.
• Able to acquire information from a variety of sources.
• Able to operate a computer and remain in a stationary position, often for long periods.
• Able to maintain focus to work in a safe manner.

EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY STATEMENT

Our Children Oregon is an equal opportunity employer that values workplace diversity and strives to be an inclusive organization. Our Children Oregon proactively ensures that discrimination does not occur against an employee or applicant on the basis of race, creed, color, traits historically associated with race, such as natural and protective hairstyles and hair texture, sex, pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, genetic information, religious or political affiliation, expunged juvenile records, performance of duty in a uniformed service, or any other protected characteristic under applicable law.

LIMITATIONS AND DISCLAIMER

This job description is meant to describe the general nature and level of work performed; it is not intended as an exhaustive list of all duties, responsibilities, and required skills for the position. Employees will be required to follow any other job-related instructions and to perform other duties requested by their supervisor in compliance with Federal and State laws. Requirements are representative of minimum levels of knowledge, skills, and/or abilities necessary to perform each duty proficiently. Continued employment remains on an "at-will" basis. Pay and responsibilities may vary depending on experience and hours worked.

EMPLOYEE ACKNOWLEDGMENT

Employee signature below indicates the employee's understanding of the requirements, essential functions and duties of the position.